Jaipur, Nov. 4 -- Polling concluded in 377 Zila Parishad wards across 27 districts and 2,119 Panchayat Samiti wards in the third phase of local polls on Tuesday, with around 52.46% voters exercising their franchise, according to the poll panel's data till 3pm. Banswara district recorded the highest turnout of 63.66% (till 3pm) during the polls, the data said. To be sure, the final turnout figures, which were awaited till the time of print, could be higher as voters standing in queue inside the polling stations till the end of the polling time are also allowed to cast their votes. Khairthal-Tijara recorded the second-highest district average turnout at 61.20%, followed by Hanumangarh at 60.54%. Sawai Madhopur recorded the lowest turnout at 43.79% followed by Beawar at 45.23%. At the panchayat samiti level, Naharpura in Banswara recorded the highest turnout at 64.65%. The district-wise turnout averages in panchayat samiti polls till 3pm were: Banswara 63.66%, Khairthal-Tijara 61.20%, Hanumangarh 60.54%, Bikaner 59.60%, Pratapgarh 59.16%, Churu 56.81%, Sri Ganganagar 55.47%, Jalore 54.59%, Udaipur 54.11%, Kotputli-Behror 54.06%, Deeg 53.55%, Bundi 53.11%, Balotra 52.34%, Dholpur 51.86%, Karauli 51.40%, Bharatpur 50.88%, Baran 50.72%, Didwana-Kuchaman 50.54%, Chittorgarh 50.39%, Sikar 50.20%, Salumber 49.89%, Jhunjhunu 46.78%, Dausa 46.38%, Tonk 45.47%, Beawar 45.23% and Sawai Madhopur 43.79%. Meanwhile, supporters of Congress and BJP candidates clashed in Makrana panchayat samiti area of Didwana-Kuchaman after both sides alleged electoral malpractice. "Police pacified both sides and resolved the matter," a senior official said. The BJP is looking to consolidate support in tribal areas and newer districts, including chief minister Bhajan Lal Sharma's home district of Bharatpur. The Congress faces the task of sustaining the momentum of its Anta by-election victory and retaining its traditional support amid the Bharat Adivasi Party's growing influence in tribal areas. The chief minister's father, Kishan Swaroop Sharma, voted in his ancestral village of Atari. Kishangarhbas MLA Deepchand Khairiya voted in Mahond gram panchayat, while former BJP MLA Shubhkaran Choudhary and his daughter, Zila Parishad Ward 18 candidate Diksha Chaudhary, voted in Todi, Jhunjhunu. Barmer MP Ummedaram Beniwal voted in Pooniyon Ka Tala, and Paralympic gold medallist Devendra Jhajharia voted in Devipura, Churu. Two elderly voters died on polling day. Hargovind Gurjar, 65, fell ill while waiting to vote in Palawas gram panchayat, Dausa. He was taken to the district hospital, where doctors declared him dead. Puni Devi, 70, of Rudhana in Beawar, died after casting her vote, officials said, suspecting she suffered silent heart attack. Voters boycotted polling in several villages over delimitation and demands for basic amenities. The protests included Nagla Singhada in Bharatpur's Bayana area; Dehlal, Harpatti and Ward 7 of Amteda in Dausa; Nagla Kishore Singh in Deeg; and Darapura in Didwana-Kuchaman. In Kachhiyathana, Baran, villagers demanded basic amenities; 408 voters stayed away. Residents of Reethauli in Karauli also boycotted polling, seeking recognition of their village as a panchayat. Voting at booth 68 in Bhairupura Silwani, Sri Ganganagar, began about two hours late because of an EVM fault. The fourth and final phase of polling is scheduled for November 14. A total of 1,305 candidates contested the zila parishad seats and 7,789 panchayat samiti seats. A total of 1,681,567 voters were eligible to cast their votes across with 11,869 polling stations...